Most of these songs are not immediately recognisable as carols, so even the biggest scrooge on the planet won’t hate hearing this record on Christmas Day.
Sleigher slays (too much?), from opener Little Drummer Bolera’s plaintive piano melody to Ben Folds’ closing take on The Mills Brothers’ You Don’t Have To Be A Santa Claus, which is giving Harry Connick Jr. (c’mon, his When Your Heart Finds Christmas album is a cracker!).
“I’m sleepwalking through Christmas/ Everybody thinks that I’m awake/ I keep my eyes open/ I’m eloquently spoken/ I hope this might be/ The year/ I make a change…” – nostalgic harmonica and sleigh bells infuse the sauntering Sleepwalking Through Christmas with Yuletide cheer.
Keep up with the latest music news, features, festivals, interviews and reviews here.
The witty Christmas Time Rhyme brings the LOLs: “Some come by walker and some come by pram/ One drives his midlife crisis Trans Am/ And me in the corner here nursing a dram [Scottish slang for a small whisky]…”
An out-there surprise harmonica solo distinguishes Folds’ otherwise reverent, earnest take on 1945’s classic The Christmas Song (yep, you know the one. Made famous by Nat King Cole, it goes, “Chestnuts roasting on an open fire..”).
Bow down to The Bell That Couldn’t Jingle’s vocal harmonies – lush AF.
During the intro for Xmas Aye Eye (LOL, geddit!?), Folds claims he used AI to come up with this song’s lyrics: “I am AI/ I am AI/ Aye eye…” – unhinged! We recognise a distorted Dance Of The Sugar Plum Fairy sample amongst this one’s prowling bass, chaotic synth and creepy breakdown (“Have you been a good little boy?”).
Containing mostly original, contemporary-set songs (“I’m dashing to the loo with my phone”), Sleigher obviously wins Best Christmas Album Title. It’s also the gift that keeps on giving – annually, around Festivus.
LABEL: NEW WEST RECORDS
RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW
